EMCE
Toys Brings MEGO Back To Life With "Night
of the Living Dead" Figures
QUEENS, NEW YORK: EMCE
Toys, the brand that brought classic
‘70s toy company MEGO back from the
dead this year, announced that it is releasing
four 8” poseable action figures based
on characters from the seminal 1968 cult
zombie classic NIGHT OF THE LVING DEAD.
The heads are sculpted
by fan favorite James Brady in the classic
MEGO rotocast plastic style, and the figures
are packaged in MEGO-style blister packaging
with illustrations by original MEGO artist
Harold Shull.
“This is the first
new line released since MEGO Corp. closed
in the 1980s,” said Paul “Dr.
Mego” Clarke, who co-created the EMCE
Toys brand at SphereWerx Micromedia. “We
brought back the classic STAR TREK and PLANET
OF THE APES toys this year, and now we’ve
created an entirely new line with the involvement
of the original MEGO players.”
The first two figures to
be released are Bill Hinzman as the “Graveyard
Zombie” from the film’s opening
scene, and Duane Jones as “Ben”,
the rifle-toting hero. Later this year,
EMCE will release Judith O’Dea as
“Barbra” and Kyra Schon as the
“Karen Cooper Zombie”. All figures
are approved by the actors or their respective
estates and are timed to the 40th anniversary
of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD.
In 1974, MEGO invented
the licensed action figure with their distinctive
eight-inch lines based on classic scifi
and superhero characters, then expanding
the lines to include electronic toys and
playsets. An entire generation of fans had
their very own “U.S.S. Enterprise
Bridge” or a removable-cowl Batman
at some point. MEGO closed its doors in
1982, leading to a sky-rocketing in the
value of these prized collectibles.
In 2006, genre marketer
SphereWerx created the EMCE Toys brand with
Paul “Dr. Mego” Clarke, a MEGO
specialist who provides custom figures for
Cartoon Network’s show “Robot
Chicken”. EMCE released painstaking
reproductions of STAR TREK and PLANET OF
THE APES MEGOs through Diamond Select Toys
in 2007.
The figures will retail
for $17.99 and will be available through
comic book, toy and pop culture shops, as
well as online and at horror conventions
throughout the US. They will also be featured
at the booths of actors Hinzman, O’Dea
and Schon at all NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
40th Anniversary appearances.
They are co-branded with
FearWerx, SphereWerx’s proprietary
horror merchandise brand.
The first two figures will
street in June 2008.
ABOUT
EMCE TOYS AND SPHEREWERX MICROMEDIA
EMCE
Toys was founded in 2006 by SphereWerx
Micromedia. EMCE is dedicated to recreating
the classic lines and new figures with the
playability of the original toys created
by MEGO Corp. All figures are either licensed
directly or through its license-holding
partners and includes the input and approval
of the Abrams family, who founded the original
MEGO Corp.
SphereWerx
Micromedia develops apparel and collectibles
for fans of popular subcultures, under its
proprietary brands EMCE Toys, FearWerx,
CosmicWerx and HeroWerx. These are sold
through distribution partners or through
its proprietary network of online stores
and live event kiosks.
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